Revenge
by hellking
Summary: Follow Uchiha Risha as he decides between Revenge or letting go of the past.
1. Chapter 1:Attack

_I do not own Naruto or any of the characters in the show or manga. This is purely fan made and does not coincide with the show or manga in any way._

"Fire style: fire ball jutsu!" Risha Uchiha screamed as he inhaled a great breath and released it. Small wisps of fire danced around the corners of his mouth, burning him and sending tendrils of sharp pain through him. Risha broke off the technique, exhaustion washed over him and he felt himself wobble, he quickly shook it off and prepared to try again.

Risha had long blue hair that cut off just above his eyes and deep sapphire eyes to match. He was slightly tanned and fit, his cheeks still held the remnants of baby fat, causing him to look only cute. He had little to no muscle on his body and seemed to be unhealthily thin. Risha wore a black tee shirt, on the back of which had the Uchiha symbol, and matching black shorts.

Risha stood in a forest, the sun light barley made it through the tree tops, keeping it cool. Kunai knives were stuck in trees and targets, dummies were broken and worn down. Training equipment, such as a jump rope and weights, were scattered all around.

As he remade the hand signs, a shadow watched him closely, the shadow had a hair style something like the butt of a duck. His eyes complimented his dark blue hair by being the perfect shade of sapphire. As the shadow watched the young Uchiha inhale deeply he felt himself tense, both in anticipation and in worry.

"_Fire style: fire ball jutsu,"_ the young Uchiha said in his head as he mixed the miniscule amount of chakra he had left with the air in his lungs. A warm sensation encased him as the chakra and air danced, intertwining in each other. Risha held it within himself until his lungs burned for release, and then, exhaling his held in breath, a small fire ball streamed form the Uchiha's mouth, touching the ground and burning the grass.

The young Uchiha smiled weakly, "I did it," he thought happily and then he collapsed. In an Instant the shadow was beside him, worry etched into his face as he stare down at the exhausted boy.

"He certainly has the Uchiha sprit," the shadow thought as he picked the boy up and prop him against a tree. He smiled, "though what else should I expect from my own son." With a final glance at his son, Sasuke Uchiha disappeared.

Risha awoke with a start, the last thing he remembered was using the fire ball jutsu and then…he passed out. The sound of foot steps and crackling leaves caused Risha to jerk his head, moving towards him was his father, dressed in the black rob and matching hat of the sound Hokage. In his hands were two boxed lunches.

"Oh its just you," said Risha breathing a sigh of relief, Sasuke smiled, "yes, just me." The Hokage sat down next to his son and handed him a box lunch, Risha tore it open and began to scarf down as much food as possible, as fast as possible. Sasuke laughed as he watched his son eat, "what's so funny?" He asked, confused by his fathers random laughter, "your eating habits are worse that Naruto's," The Hokage said laughing.

Not understanding the joke Risha shook his head and downed the last few bits of his food. "So," the young Uchiha asked a moment later, "what are you doing here?" "Well," Sasuke began after finishing his own lunch "I was walking and just happen to catch that great fire ball jutsu of your's." "Don't lie dad," said Risha, the Hokage was surprised, "but I'm not lying…" he began but was cut off, "about the fire ball I mean, you know as well as I do that it wasn't 'great'."

Sasuke understood then that his son was feeling depressed, it only made sense that he would, after all as a child he was often alone. Sasuke was off on missions with Naruto and Kakashi and his son was left at home with his mother. It was because of him that his son was below average and picked on.

"Sorry," said the saddened Hokage, Risha blinked in surprise, "for what?" He asked, "if it wasn't for me going out on adventures then you would be stronger and your mother would still be alive," he explained, the pain clear in each word. "Don't be stupid!" Risha yelled, startling his father, "if you were here then mom would still be dead and I wouldn't have made any progress, that's the way things are dad."

Sasuke smiled and shook his head, "my son," he said as he stared up, watching the tree tops blow in the breeze, "you have good insight, but remember always that not everything is written in stone." Risha stared blankly at his father as he stared up, after a moment he shook his head. His father did this a lot, telling him strange things and never explaining them.

"Enough of that," Sasuke said a moment later and then turned to his son, "would you like to learn a trick to the fire ball jutsu?" He asked, a wicked smile that reveled his true wicked self broke across his face. Risha returned his fathers smile with one of his own, "of course," he said, a nervous excitement brewing in the pit of his stomach. "Good," Sasuke said, pushing himself to his feet, Risha did the same, "now my son watch me close," he said as he made the hand signs for the fire ball jutsu at a blinding speed. He then inhaled deeply and mixed the chakra with the oxygen, then, when he felt the warmth spread to every part of his body, he exhaled. Risha watched closely and, within only a few moments he saw it, the chakra and the air were perfectly mixed and were kept in a constant, unlike his own which was out of sync.

When his father broke off Risha made the hand signs for the jutsu. Determination was inscribed on his face as he breathed deeply. "You can do this," he thought, "you MUST do this." Slowly he mixed the chakra with the air, until he felt that it was perfect, "_fire style_," he started but was then interrupted by an explosion. Both him and his father turned and saw, to their horror, smoke rising from the village. "Stay here," Sasuke commanded as he raced off. Anger flooded Risha when his father was gone, "this is my village too damn it and I'll not stand by while its attacked," he shouted and then raced off towards the smoking village.


	2. Chapter 2: Chero appears

_I still do not own Naruto_

Chero Ayome walked through the burning village, smiling pleasantly at the carnage that had been inflicted upon the village, _all because of me_, she thought. Chero had short black hair and was thin with fair skin. She wore a black, sleeveless combat shirt with red clouds. Underneath she wore black fishnet, reinforced with a special chakra wire that made it as strong as mail. She also wore long cameo pants.

Two figures appeared in front of Chero in a blur, both kept their heads down and the faces covered by their hoods, "master Ayome," they said simultaneously, both respect and fear in their voices. "Report," Chero commanded, "the Chu`nin and Jo`nin are all dead, but we have yet to find Uchiha Sasuke." Chero frowned, "fine," she said "now gather up the rest of _Black Hand _and pull out," the konoichi said dissatisfied. The pair disappeared without a word.

Standing behind one of the few buildings that had not been burnt down, Risha had watched the whole scene unfold. _Who is she? She looks to be about 15, only two years older than I, but she has so much command_. Deciding it did not matter the young Uchiha drew from the ninja bag, that was strapped to his left leg, a kunai knife. With a gulp he jumped out of his place of hiding and chucked it at the female ninja, aiming for her the back of her head.

Sensing something approaching rapidly, Chero spun around and was shocked to find a kunai flying straight towards her and, no more the ten feet away, a young boy dressed in black. _He looks to be a genin_, she thought as she nimbly sidestepped the kunai and then countered with one of her own.

Seeing a kunai rapidly approach him, Risha dodged, _she's good_, thought the Uchiha as the kunai whizzed by, only inches from his head. He then threw another kunai, the strange female dodged, however Risha was far from finished. He charged the female ninja and kicked upward at her head, she avoided, dismayed he aimed a punch for her nose. She slapped it away and countered by backhanding Risha.

Staggering backward the Uchiha rubbed his check, the stinging sensation reminded him of the sing of a bee. "Who the hell are you?" He asked "I am Chero Ayome of the _Akatski_, who are you?" she replied respectfully. "My name is Risha Uchiha," Risha responded. Shock caused Chero to drop her guard briefly, Risha caught it and took advantage of it by kicking her in ribs.

The force of the kick knocked the wind from Chero, preventing her from defending herself and Risha knew it. Ducking low he fired a punch off, it landed in same spot that his kick had, sending a fresh wave of pain through Chero. Then he rose from his ducked positioned and planted a solid uppercut that caused the female ninja to fly backwards and come down on her butt.

Anger washed through Chero hotly as she rose to her feet and patted her bruised butt. "I'll kill the little whelp for that," she muttered and then rushed forward, her speed catching Risha off guard she threw a left hook, catching him below the left eye. She then proceeded to assault him with a barrage of high and low punches, all of which the Uchiha tried and failed to block. With one swift kick to the head Chero knocked Risha to the ground where he remained motionless.

As she stared at his lifeless body a strange feeling of regret emerged within her, _why?_ She asked herself_why do I feel regret for killing this boy?_ Chero pondered her feelings for a moment, but eventually decided it did not matter why she felt regret,_ the deed has been done_, she reasoned,_ regret cannot change that_. Bowing, the female ninja muttered, "you fought well, may you find peace in your next life." she then turned and began to walk away from the boy.

Then, as she walked, she sensed something drawing near her, when she turned to see it she was caught on the cheek by the edge of a kunai. Blood trickled down from the small cut the blade had made.

Surprise overwhelmed Chero when what was before her eyes had registered, "he's alive," she muttered to herself, strange relief coursing through her. Risha Uchiha knelt of one knee, he spat out the blood that was pooling within his mouth and whipped the blood from under his nose. His breath was coming in large gasps and every moment hurt. "How dare you turn your back on me," he said gasping, "I am far from dead."

Chero smiled at the Uchiha, "you are brave Risha Uchiha, I give you that, but bravery is something only for fools, as is pride." Risha laughed, "then I am twice a fool, for my pride will not allow me to run." The words struck a cord with Chero deep down, _he reminds me of you Don_, she thought sadly.

Crossing his fingers Risha called out, "shadow clone jutsu!" In a puff of smoke five more of the Uchiha appeared. Chero took her stance as two of the clones rushed her, one went in for a low kick, which Chero effortlessly avoided. The second clone moved in for a punch, the female ninja caught the clones fist. With his free hand the clone attempted to back fist the female assailant, she blocked his fist and the shoved him free, causing his guard to falter.

Chero rushed in and planted a solid punch in to the clones face, causing to disappear in a plume of smoke. She then spun on her heel and, pulling several ninja stars from the bag as her side and tossing them, eradicated the remaining clones. Risha was dumbfounded by her skill and her grace, _she is far stronger than most of are Jo`nin_, he thought.

Grinding his teeth together the Uchiha rushed forward, Chero again took her stance, _that won't work twice_, he thought with a smile. Making a quick session of hand signs the Uchiha cried out, "sandstorm jutsu!" A gust blew up around him, picking up masses of dirt and dust. Within only a few seconds both him and Chero were surrounded within a large plume of dust.

Risha rushed forward and, bending backwards, he kicked up at Chero's chest, she caught the kick in the palm of her hands just before it connected. Pulling back Risha disappeared into the dust. _Damn she's got skills, no one in the sound village has ever been able to sense me coming while I'm using the sandstorm jutsu, but she was able to sense my attack and defend_, he thought. Reaching into his ninja bag he withdrew several ninja stars, then he crossed his fingers and said silently, "shadow clone jutsu." Two clones appeared next to him, both holding ninja stars.

With the moment of an arm the clones vanished into the dust, "I hope this works," muttered Risha.

Chero felt it from all directions, drawing closer, she stood still, concentrated and composed. Then, once she felt that there were close enough, she dodged each shuriken. To an onlooker is would have appeared as is she was doing a beautiful and fluid dance.

The clone pair charged the female ninja, one went for her legs with a sliding kick that Chero easily avoided and then countered with a palm thrust to the clones stomach. The second attacked with a kunai that it held in its hand, the cloned Uchiha slashed for her side while she was still bent over. Chero however danced away from the attack and in one fluid moment back fisted the clone in the face. Then with her free hand she pulled it forward and into her knee.

"Enough of our game!" The ninja shouted as she made a hand sign and, concentrating her chakra, she dispelled the sandstorm around her. In front of her stood the exposed Risha, who to her surprise was smiling. "What is it that you have to smile at now boy?" she inquired "my victory," he replied simply, surprising the female ninja and then, in a puff of smoke, he was gone. _A clone_, Chero realized and then she felt the air heating up behind her, she spun around and saw a massive fireball approaching.

Chero moved quickly to avoid the fireball, but she was unable to avoid being scorched by its heat. Anger overwhelmed her when she saw Risha standing, pale and sweaty. She drew a kunai and attacked, the Uchiha attempted to dodge, but was far to slow and his left shoulder was cut deeply. He grabbed it as Chero spun on her heal and embedded a kick into his right shoulder.

Blinded by pain Risha stood helpless as chakra became visible around Chero's free hand. She rushed at him with inhuman speed, her hand held level with her head, "die Uchiha scum!" she cried out as she swung her hand down at Risha's neck. The Uchiha closed his eyes, _I'm going to die!_ He though fearfully, _die…die…die!_


	3. Chapter 3: Sharingan and self awakening

_**Naruto is NOT mine.**_

_Chapter 3: Sharingan and self awakening._

_Die! _The thought struck hard within Risha, flashes of all those he cares about, his secret crush that was never really a secret, his father who had always been there for him, at least since he was 10. Most of all, his biggest rival, Takami, the one person who had always taunted him and given him hell. Anger and regret and fear raged within him and, in that instant, a sense of true self emerged. Power, deep and unwavering power surged through him, and suddenly, death had ceased to be an option.

Opening his eyes, everything seemed to have slowed down, not wasting time to combat his new found confusion, Risha quickly made the hand signs for the replacement technique.

Chero hit her mark and for an instant she smiled, but then, a puff of smoke and a log were left in place of Risha. _Where? _She thought angrily, _that brat ha no chakra, so where could he have gone?_ Then, from behind her, she sensed several objects moving towards her. She turned, the sight answering her question, Risha Uchiha was behind her, and he had _changed_. It was almost subtle, but still somehow noticeable, he had grown, as if he had gained something indescribable and impossible to understand. But she knew what it was, in the pit of her stomach she could…_feel_ what had happened.

Risha, renewed of power, made a quick secession of hand signs and then muttered quietly, "shuriken clone technique." The seven shuriken he had thrown suddenly multiplied to 100 shuriken. Seeing that this had stunned his opponent caused him to smile in satisfaction.

Chero was unable to grasp how he had managed to create so many shuriken, he brain had gone into a state of shock. She felt a sensation of hopelessness within herself, almost as if he existence was put on the line, her purpose being tested. She closed her eyes and exhaled. _Relax, you have the power to defeat this boy, you have a greater purpose than he_. Opening her eyes, everything began to slow around her, she smiled, both with disgust and appreciation. She walked, effortlessly, away from the barrage of shuriken and then placed herself only ten feet from the Uchiha brat.

The shuriken passed by, hitting nothing, and Risha was left, astounded as he saw, ten feet from him, Chero. "H-how did you…do that?" He asked, unable to compose himself. A slow smile crept across Chero's face, "I see now," she began "that you have awoken your Sharingan, impressive." She paused for a moment, to let his confidence rebuild from that realization. "However," she said, barely able to keep the maddening laugh from escaping, "your not the only one here with a blood-line trait and," again she paused to watch his confidence shatter, "mine has more power than yours ever could." And then she laughed, she laughed a laugh the shattered every form of confidence and belief, every hope and dream. All of it was gone and replaced by complete darkness.

Risha swallowed hard, _Sharingan…isn't even enough…Sharingan isn't ENOUGH!_ The realization sent uncontrollable fear through him, for in that moment he knew, without a question, that death was in his immediate future. Then, in a speed that he was barely able to catch, Chero's ran towards him, a streak of blue behind her from the release of her jutsu. Risha held his ground and smiled, _if this is my death_, he thought, _I won't flinch, I won't run, I'll face it with a smile._ Then, as he felt at peace with his own demise, a flash whizzed by him, and then a crackling sound. For a moment he was unable to register it all, but then he saw clearly, his father, Saskue Uchiha, grappling with Chero, both of them snarling. A sensation of relief washed over Risha and he fell to his knees, tears streamed from his face, and a fleeting sensation of joy so great washed over him, then, fear, not for himself alone, but for his father.


	4. Chapter 4: Sweet Revenge

**Chapter 4: Sweet Revenge**

Risha stared, his every instinct told him to run, run far away from here and hide, but a combination of fear and pride held him in place. "F-father," he managed to say as Saskue threw Chero off and then, with blinding speed, kicked her in the side of the head, sending her through the air. She landed with a loud thud and made no movements to show that she was alive. Saskue was wary however and kept his guard as he took his sons side. "Risha," he began "you must run from this place. You must head to Konoha and talk to their Hokage, Uzumaki Naruto and inform him of all that has happened here. Now go!"

Risha stared at his father in disbelief, "but…" he began to say, but then, out of the corner of his eye he caught a flicker of a movement from Chero's body, "dad!" He yelled and pointed. Saskue turned his attention to Chero, who had risen to her feet, "go!" Saskue commanded as he charged Chero and for a moment Risha did nothing, but then he felt a strange darkness, a evil, vile power, he looked at his fathers back and noticed that his curse mark was _active_. In that moment Risha picked himself up and ran as fast as he could, his pride was gone, all he wanted to do now was get away as he had heard the stories of his fathers curse mark…how it consumed him and turned him into a monster. As his son ran, Saskue smiled, the curse mark had covered his entire body now and his inner darkness had been driven out.

Chero scoffed at him, "so, this is the curse mark that was set on you by Oorochimaru, ehh?" Saskue smiled and a chill went down her spine, "yeah…I had forgotten how good this feels," he said as his dark chakra swirled around him. As Chero stared at Saskue, she found herself being pulled away from herself, as if her very soul was being ripped from her body. And as she looked ahead she saw nothing but eternal darkness, an abyss of total nothingness. Darkness had completely eclipsed her being and she was left naked, her meaning of existence had been stripped along with her sense of self. This place, whatever it was, was truly hell, a hell that she understood. This was her in its truest form, this place was the emptiness inside her, the nothingness, the hollow shell that she was. In these moments of total darkness she realized that she was nothing and that she stood for nothing, she realized she would fall.

Tears fell from her eyes as she realized this terrible self truth, _why_, she asked herself,_ why am I here if this nothingness is all I am? _For several agonizing moments there was no answer, but then, from the darkness came a light, a purpose with which she could attach her entire existence. _Revenge_, she said to herself. That was why she was here, to take revenge for the horrible life she had had, she was here to kill Uchiha Saskue for killing her brother and her happiness. In that moment of realization, the darkness around her broke and she found herself in the same place she had been and she saw Saskue, smiling his wicked smile at her.

"Impressive," he said, "you survived my Mangekyo Sharingan, but, I can see that it has taken a toll on you." Chero felt sick as she scowled at him, she would never admit it to him but he was right, she was exhausted and her chakra was low. Reaching behind him, Saskue drew his sword and, with speed unlike anything Chero had seen before, he attacked. Chero took a stance and exhaled, everything slowed down just enough for her to catch the faint glimpses of Saskue's movements. She smiled to herself, as long as she could catch those she would be able to counter.

As Saskue drew closer Chero changed up her stance, she was ready for his frontal assault. But then, inches away from her, Saskue suddenly changed his speed and disappeared, _what?_ Was the only though Chero had time to think before she felt his blade slip into her. With shock and horror on her face she turned to Saskue just in time to see the disgust on his face melt into confusion. Chero smiled, the blade had indeed gone in between her ribs, but because of her chakra armor, it had failed to cause any serious damage. Saskue quickly pulled the blade free, causing pain to run throw her, and then, raising it above his head, prepared to decapitate her. Desperate for more time, Chero used the remainder of her chakra to slow things down further and then, mustering up all of her strength, she hit Saskue with a solid left hook, causing him to stumble back a few feet and bleed from his lower lip.

Using the sleeve of his Hokage rode he whipped away the blood and with a flick of the wrist all the blood that had dirtied his sword splattered on the ground. "You're very lucky to have the chakra armor girl, otherwise, this battle would have ended a little too soon," he said smugly. Chero glared at him, not bothering to hide all the hate she had gather towards him. "However, if you keep bleeding like that then this battle will be over in due time," he mocked her with a small laugh and all Chero could do was glare. She knew well that without chakra she could not take care of her wound and would soon bleed to death, _what can I do?_ She pondered_, with no chakra…wait…my chakra pills_, reaching into her ninja back she pulled out a small black pill and for a moment she only stared at it, wondering if it was worth the risk. _I've never had the chance to test its affects…but, its either this or die to the hands of scum like him_. Without so much as a second thought she plopped the pill into her mouth and swallowed. Immediately she felt its affects as her chakra was restored, no, it had increased, she felt stronger and renewed. With a smile she concentrated chakra into her left hand and, placing it over her wounded side, healed the wound up in a matter of seconds. "It looks like, to me, you can't count on my bleeding out any time soon, Uchiha," she said with a wicked laugh.

Saskue couldn't believe it, he was sure that she had used up all he chakra but now, she had more chakra than he did. Gritting his teeth he made a decision that he hadn't made since his last battle with Naruto--he was going to use stage two of his curse mark. Closing his eyes he allowed himself to be submerged in all he had lost, his family, his village, then he thought of all the pain is son had experienced because of this invader. In that moment Saskue became immersed in complete hatred, and stage two of his curse mark took hold. His chakra surged and increased to match Chero's, "Girl, tell me your name," he demanded. "I am Chero Ayome of the Akatski," she replied and in that moment, everything made sense to Saskue, He flashed back, remembering how he had killed a man by the name of Don Ayome during the war with the Grass ninja. _This girl, she bares relation to him…once again the mistakes of my past come back to haunt me_, Saskue thought. "Well, Ayome Chero, for killing all the innocent people of this village and making an attempt on the life of my son, you shall die here!" The Hokage proclaimed and then made a quick session of hand signs that Chero recognized to be that of the Chidori's.

Around Saskue's hand was what looked like a black lightning bolt, it crackled with ferocity, stray bolts tearing at the ground. "Chidori," he announced and then bolted at Chero in a speed that, to her surprise, was noticeable. She smiled and using he excess of chakra, she slowed everything down to almost a complete stop. Then, as she walked towards her opponent, she made the hand signs and called out "chakra cadaver." A blue blade of pure energy engulfed her hand. She stopped only inches from her opponent and smiled, "you put up a good fight Uchiha," she said, "I see now the skills that killed my brother, but for his sake, and for mine, your village shall be your grave." And then, she stabbed him in the chest, sending tendrils of the chakra dancing around his chest.

Saskue could feel it, the blood pooling in his lungs, his Chidori disappearing from his hand and his Sharingan unintentionally fading. He coughed and felt a mass of blood fill his mouth, most of which overflowed. With his little strength he looked up a Chero and smiled, the look of shock on her face at the peaceful smile he wore almost made Saskue laugh. "_It seems…that you've gotten your revenge for your brother…now…maybe your hate…will rest in the past…with him_," said Saskue as his life slipped out of his body and he fell into a darkness, his dying thought of his son and how he would have given anything for a few more minutes time with him.

As Chero watched her adversary die she could not help but shed a tear for him and all that he had lost. "Uchiha Saskue…" she said simply, unable to reply to his dying wish for her to leave her hatred behind her. In silence she lay him down in the dirt and with one hand she closed his eyes. "May your next life be one filled with much happiness," she said simply and the, with a few hand signs, melded into shadows.


	5. Chapter 5: Finding the Crossroads

_**Chapter 5: Finding the crossroads **_

_**I do not own Naruto.**_

The pale moon light came through the tree tops in single beams giving only enough light to see the forest path. The trees that surrounded Risha reached out at him with branches that looked like bony fingers. He couldn't help but feel claustrophobic being surrounded but the trees on both sides, but his fear of capture by that women kept him running. Although he was miles away from the sound village, thanks to a secret passage in the Hokage's tower that was used when the Leaf and Sound villages had to meet in a hurry, he still feared she was following. So, Risha ran onwards, ignoring the burning in his chest and the screaming pain in his legs that begged him to stop, he ran.

Time crept by slowly and Risha felt anxiety as he was still miles away from his destination. Each second that ticked by made him feel sick to his stomach, he wanted, or more like, needed to get away from this forest. It felt evil, like something was in it was watching him, waiting for him. Risha increased his speed only to trip over his own feet and come crashing to the ground. His clothes ripped and the wounds that had closed up reopened and began to bleed.

Minutes crept by and Risha just laid on the ground breathing heavily, he was exhausted, too exhausted to move. All he wanted to do was fall into a deep sleep and leave this world behind for the world of dream. He closed his eyes and within minutes he had drifted into a deep slumber.

_Everything was sunny and warm, the grass was a perfect shade of green and the air was filled with the smell of flowers. Everyone was playing ninja tag, everyone but Risha. He was always excluded from such games by the others. He was a reject and he couldn't understand why. Why was it that all the other children hater him so much? Why was it that the adults of the village loved him so dearly? He couldn't understand any of it._

_Tears began to spill from Risha's eyes, but he quickly whipped them away with the sleeve of his Uchiha robe. He was sick of crying, all that did was get him more unwanted attention from the adults and cause the children to resent him more. Scowling, Risha walked away from the game, as much as he wanted to be included in the fun he would not ask to be, not to them._

_He continued to the training field and, grabbing as many kunai and shuriken as he could find, he began target practice. Each kunai and shuriken hit its mark and Risha smiled to himself._

"_While the brats play their games, I'll train and become the best that there is," he said to himself still smiling. Risha then continued to the taijutsu training area, however, once he arrived there he was dismayed to find that someone else was using the training dummy. Worse, it was his rival, Takami. He was always one-upped and taunted by Takami in everything he did, but today was going to be different. Clenching his fist, Risha announced, "I, Uchiha Risha, challenge Utaka Takami to a fight!"_

_Takami turned to Risha and with a smile said, "I accept." The two faced each other at opposite sides of the trained field. On their lefts were the beat up training dummies and on their right was a crowd of children who had heard about the challenge from Takami's friend. The two took their stances and for a few moments simply glared at each other._

_Then, they rushed each other, Risha knelt down and attempted to slid and kick Takami's feet out from under him, however he easily avoided the attack and counted by kicking Risha in his left side. Pain shot through him and some tears managed to make their way out of his eyes. Takami saw this and mocked him by saying, "aw, look at the poor baby, he's crying." The crowd of children laughed at him and anger weld up within Risha. He stood and charged Takami and threw a left hook, aiming for the side of his head, however Takami ducked and counted by punching Risha in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him. _

_More pain, more tears, and more taunts followed with every blow that Risha took and he was unable to do anything about it. He was too weak to land so much as a finger on Takami. He was so frustrated that he began shaking and crying uncontrollably and everyone knew about it! Finally Takami simply quit, saying that he wouldn't fight a crybaby. _

_After the crowd had finally left, Risha was alone, tears were now falling free from his eyes and there was nothing he could do to stop them. "I hate myself!" He yelled at the top of his lungs. _

Jumping forward and leaving his dream Risha found that he was no longer in a forest and was instead in a room that looked like an infirmary. Removing the covers he saw that he was no longer wearing his clothes and was now bandaged up. Moving carefully out of his bed he walked over to a window in the room and looked outside. He could see from the window a red tower that looked like the Hokage tower in his village only this one had a different mark on it. He couldn't put his finger on it but he knew the mark. For moments he stared out of the window, looking only at the mark and in an instant he realized he was in the Leaf village.

He was overjoyed and confused all at once, but he didn't have time to ask himself any questions. Moving quickly towards the door he reached for the handle when he head something from the other side. _Voices_, there were voices and they were getting closer. Risha pressed his ear to the door, trying to hear what they were saying, but all he could make out was "Uchiha." They were coming to his room. Quickly he got black in bed, grabbing a kunai on the way. He covered himself up and held still as he heard the door creek open slowly.


	6. Chapter 6: First Impressions

_**Chapter 6: First impressions mean everything**_

_**I do not own Naruto…yet**_

One walked in, then another, and then another, the last one closing the door behind them. At that moment, Risha sprung up and threw his kunai directly at the person who had closed the door. It grazed past the young girl that was the kunai's target and stuck into the door frame. Risha caught a small tickle of blood slid down the girls, smooth, pale face and then, he caught a flicker of movement out of the corner of his eye. A boy about his age, with handsome, strong features and spiked blond hair was charging towards him. Risha gripped his covers, knowing he was in for a beating when, a young female ninja that wore the outfit of a Jonin, stuck her arm out in front of him, stopping him dead in his tracks.

"Well, it seems your well enough to be setting traps and trying to kill the people who saved you life, Uchiha," the female ninja said. Risha stared at her for a minute, she had star light silver hair and was tanned ever so slightly. She was fit and possessed an air of command. One of her eyes was covered by her headband, but the one that wasn't was a beautiful sandy brown color.

The young girl who Risha had hit with his kunai was mending the wound on her face. She had dark blue hair and fair, smooth skin. When she moved her hand from where the cut was, there wasn't so much as a trace that anything had ever grazed her cheek. Her eyes were pale, matching her white outfit and her skin. She carried an air of peace and calm that soothed Risha.

Then there was the boy that had been about to, as Risha was sure of this, beat him to a bloody death. His slightly spiked blond hair and his blue eyes gave complimented his build, making him, as much as Risha hated to admit it, good looking. Much better looking than Risha. He also had a somewhat fierce, though slightly relaxed presence to him that made Risha nervous.

Risha turned his attention back to the female ninja who was looking directly at him, "I'm sorry," he said, " I didn't know…that you saved me." The female ninja smiled at him, "I know, and honestly, I understand. Waking up in a strange village, stripped, possibly raped. Must be a very awkward and tough situation. I'd would be on edge as well," she said.

"Wait…did you say something about rape?" Risha asked

"In any case," she began, ignore the question completely, "my name is Kushina Hatake, and this," she said, gesturing at the girl first, "is Kiko Hyuuga." Risha looked at the girl, eyes wide, the Hyuuga clan was the only clan he had ever heard of that had the power to match the Sharingan of the Uchiha clan. "And this," she said, moving her hand towards the boy with blond hair, "Is Haru Uzumaki , son of the Hokage." When Risha looked at him he was beyond surprised, he had, in less than an hour, met two people his father would have wanted him to show great respect for.

Immediately Risha got up and went to where the Hyuuga girl was standing and wrapped his arms around her in a hug. She froze up and Haru and Kushina could only look on in surprise. When he released her, he said, "I'm very sorry for what I did, could you find it in me to forgive me?" For a few moments she was quiet and Risha feared that she hated him, but then she spoke silently, "I've forgiven you already." Risha smiled at her happily and then turned his attention to Haru. Extending his hand and smiling the most friendly smile he could he said, "I am sorry for attacking you team mate, please forgive me." Haru stared at his hand for a moment and then took Risha's hand in a firm grasp. "If Kiko forgives you, then I do as well," was all he said when he let go of Risha's hand.

Then, turning to Kushina, Risha asked, or rather commanded, "where is the Hokage, Naruto Uzumaki" For a few moments all Kushina did was stare at the young Uchiha, examining him from head to toe. It was strange, having her observe him the way she did. It was like she was seeing past that outside and looking deep inside him. A chill went up Risha's spin as he remembered how his father used to look at him the same way when he was in trouble. Thinking about it, every time that his father had done that he had told what he had done. That, he figured, was what Kushina was doing, however he refused to let her pry the information out of him so easily.

As she continued to stare him down, the awkwardness and intensity increasing as time passed, Risha discovered a way to win their little battle. Staring at the ground he closed his eyes for a moment, _Sharingan_, he thought and then reopened his eyes and looked up as her. She was able to hide the surprise from her face, but Risha could tell by the look in her eye she was broke of concentration. _What I have to say to the Hokage is for him to hear only, no one else_, he communicated with his eyes and Kushina merely smiled. "Okay," she said, "but first clean yourself up, you must look presentable. I will send you new clothes." Risha agreed with a nod and then proceeded, escorted by the Hyuuga girl, to the showers.

Once there he quickly washed himself clean of dirt and dried blood. When he got out her found some fresh clothes with a note reading: _Risha, I delivered these to you while in the shower and I must say, nice body honey. _"What a dirty young lady," Risha mumbled to himself only to read in the next line, _however, other than the muscles, I didn't see anything, you pervert, Kushina. _Risha smiled but also glared at the not for that last line and then, he quickly got dressed and proceeded to leave. However, as he left he caught his reflection in the mirror. His dark blue hair spilled in front of his eyes slightly, his muscles and his slight tan, his deep sapphire eyes, all complimented his new outfit. It was dark blue with red splotches on the front. On the back was a big Uchiha symbol that was surrounded with the markings of the Sharingan. Smiling at himself all Risha could say was: "I look really good," and then he left the showers and headed towards the Hokage tower.


	7. Chapter 7 The Man in The Tower

_**Chapter 7: The Man in The Tower**_

_**Me not owns your Naruto**_

Up close, the Hokage's tower was gigantic, that was always the first thought Risha had when he had to enter the one in the Sound. No matter where he was he could see it, but it never looked so big, so menacing until you were right there. It was humbling really, to be climbing up a tower that had housed all the greatest Hokage's. The history, it flowed through the tower and, much like the Hokage Mountain, the tower was a land mark of the Hidden Leaf village.

As Risha ascended the final flight of stairs, he suddenly found himself _afraid_, afraid of what the Hokage of the leaf would be like, afraid that this was some kind of trap, most of all however, he was afraid that when he got to the top, he would hear that his father was dead. He stopped just a few steps before reaching to top and took a deep, shaky breath. His entire body was shaking from fear and nervousness and he felt sick, as if he were about to puke. For a few minutes he stood there, breathing deeply and, after some time his shakes went away. Finally he climbed the last few stairs to find a middle aged ninja with bright yellow hair, spiked the same as Haru's. The man had a face etched with lines of worry, but it was gentle and welcoming. He had a strong build and, from what Risha could tell, his hands were scared and calloused from training and years of battle. As Risha stared into the mans smiling face and looked into his blue eyes, he felt safe and, a strange feeling as if this man could make everything better.

"Welcome," the man spoke, "I am the Hokage of the leaf, Uzumaki Naruto," and with a jester of his hand he bowed down, his Hokage robe flowing around him. It was a strange experience for Risha, to have the Hokage bow to him, he quickly returned to jester however and knelt down on his knees. When Naruto looked up and saw that he was bowing to him, he rushed over and picked Risha off the ground and with a silly grin he said, "don't bow to me, you idiot, I won't accept it!"

"O…okay Hokage-sama," said Risha, stunned that he was being treated as an equal to the Hokage.

"No, no, no. 'Sama' will not be tolerated either. We are both ninja, just because I hold a higher title than you and am unfathomably stronger, doesn't mean that we shouldn't treat each other like equals. After all, my boy, ninja's respect strength, so, show that you are strong," said Naruto.

For a few moments, all Risha could do was stare at Naruto, who was still holding him up by his arm. He had never been treated as an equal to anyone, he was always lower, always weaker, but Naruto, he treated him as his equal. It was strange and yet it felt warming to be treated like a ninja rather than trash.

"Understood, Naruto," said Risha, moving his arm to get him to let go of him. For a few choice moments he just stood there and looked at him and Risha began to worry that he had offended him, but then, he smiled. Putting his hands behind his back, the Hokage walked to the window and stared out of it.

"Well, its clear to see that your Sasuke's boy," he began, "but that doesn't explain much. You were found beaten and bloodied on the path to the village, miles away from the Hidden Sound. That's not even the strangest thing. The night we found you and identified you to be Sasuke's boy, we went to check the village. Of the 4 ninja we had sent, only one returned. He was shocked and couldn't tell us much more then that the sound was destroyed. After that, I guessed that Sasuke had sent you out of the village to protect you and to deliver a message. Am I right?"

For a few moments, Risha simply couldn't breath, he knew that the sound village was doomed, the moment he left he knew it, but hearing it hurt. His home was gone, destroyed. It was more that just a place, it was his memories, his experiences, his enemies, they were gone. It was all gone.

"Yes," said Risha, surprising himself with how even his voice was, "my father sent me here to find you. He wanted me to tell you that the Sound was attacked, but you know that. So, it seems the only other piece of information I have it that we were attacked by a girl. Her name was Chero Ayome and she was a Grass ninja. I…remember that her headband had a slash through it, but, that's about all I can recall."

For a few moments there was only silence and then finally Naruto spoke: "I see then. Thank you, your information will help us greatly. Are you sure, however, that you can only remember that much?"

Risha thought long and hard, trying to collect and piece together what had happened that night, but everything was a blur. "I'm sorry, but yes, that's all I can remember. Its all so blurry to me," Risha confessed. Again, everything was silent before Naruto finally nodded.

"Well, you were in bad shape, I guess that its to be expected that you don't remember much of anything. However, if you do remember, even if it seems like it is insignificant, come and bring it to me. Its very important that we find what happened and who did this," said Naruto.

"I understand Naruto," said Risha as he turned to leave but then, he spun back and in a rush he sputtered out, "my father! Did my father ever show up, was he found at the Sound village? Naruto, where is he?"

When Naruto turned around, he saw a boy with horror on his face and in his eyes that was so strong it sent a shiver up Naruto's spine. "I'm sorry," he began, "I have no idea where Sasuke is at." Risha's eyes dropped and Naruto felt the boys pain as his own, "but," he added, "I'm sure he is fine, its Uchiha Sasuke after all." Risha looked up at him, he was smiling, and Naruto could not help but grin back with his own silly, carefree grin.

"In the meantime, you will be assigned to a ninja team here so that you may train and better yourself. I believe team Kushina Hatake has an open spot for you to fill. They should be at the training field, at the south end of the village," said Naruto.

Risha did not disagree, he merely turned around and began his decent down the long flights of stairs. As he walked he became lost in thought, so many little questions swarmed in his head. What had happened in the village? Why were they attacked? Where was his father. He became so lost in these thoughts that when a door opened in front of him and someone stepped out, he didn't notice and he bumped into them

As he stumbled back he heard an oddly familiar voice mutter, "s…sorry for that,' and when he looked to see he could not believe his eyes. It was a girl with dark black hair that was layered around her face slightly and the bangs were cut of just above her eyes. She was fit and had an athletic type body, her eyes shined a translucent blue when she finally looked up from the ground. She wore a dark grey tank top that reached just above her pants line and over top that, a jacket that her hands were stuffed in. Her pants were black and baggy, and her shoes were open-toed.

"Hitori?"

"Risha?"

They asked at the same time and then, without any hesitation, the embraced each other in a tight hug. It was warming for Risha to see her, his girlfriend from the leaf that, he had to leave when their mission had ended. "I've missed you," she whispered to him and Risha felt the tears spill out.

"I love you," he muttered to her.


	8. Chapter 8 Discussing Fate

_**Chapter 8: Discussing Fate **_

_**I don't own this show**_

Holding hands and walking through Konoha was the best thing, the only thing for Risha and Hitori at that moment. They had gone on a mission into the Sand to protect their Kage and, through the experiences their, they had ended up falling for each other. However, they were from different villages and had to part ways, now, to both their joy and surprise, they had been brought back together. At this moment, she was the only real thing he had, the only thing that really and truly mattered. He wanted to tell her that, he wanted her to know how much she meant, but he couldn't. He was afraid to open up to her, to anyone, he just couldn't right now.

"Hitori," said Risha, attracting her attention, "my father said something to me that didn't make sense until now. He told me that not everything is set in stone…I couldn't understand that at first, but now that I'm here with you I get it. I thought we'd never see each other again but, here we are."

Hitori smiled, "that's how fate works," she said, in her soft, shy voice, "we set things in stone, but we all have something we are meant to do and people we need to meet and places we need to be."

After that they were both silent, the only sound was their foot steps, they had passed through the village and were now walking in the forest bordering around it. It was a beautiful place, its array of flowers of all kinds, their smell catching in the wind giving the air a sweet smell. The rays of light that shimmered through the trees kept it cool and gave an atmosphere of peace and serenity. It was calming to be in such a beautiful place and helped Risha clear the thoughts in his head.

"If fate means that I lose my home and my way of life. If it means that I can't control anything around me, then I wish our lives were boring and set in stone," said Risha with anger behind each of his word.

Hitori's hand slipped out of his and when he turned around to see her, she had a mortified expression on her face that Risha could not understand. But, before he even had the chance to ask, she spoke: "Are you saying that you would have rather stayed in your village and lived a life that repeats itself then to have met me and have that experience? Are you saying, you'd rather live a perfect little life that follows that standard of society than to have suffered and become who you are?" Hitori's passion astonished Risha, he had never heard her speak so openly and with so much power.

For moments the stared at each other, she waiting for his answer and he pondering the questions that she had presented him. "Hitori…I don't want to lose what we've been through together, but…I just can't understand why, why this happened? I love you, I want to be with you, I always knew that I would one day come here to be with you, but like this? I've lost everything to fate and I can't understand any of it," he replied.

"Risha," she said, her voice soft and gentle, "I know that its impossible to understand any of this. I lost my parents to fate so I've never had a real home because my heart has never really been in anything. The only thing fate gave me was my skill as a medical ninja and…it brought me to you. Fate is unpredictable because its influenced by what we do, but I know that what I did made me who I am and I have a purpose to live for. Its easiest to believe that we all have a purpose to live for, even if that purpose is our choice to follow through on, fate gave it to us and our experiences influence whether or not we accept out purpose."

Again there was nothing but silence between the two as Risha allowed what she had said to sink into him. Everything in his life had been far from easy, he had always been a weak person with little going for him and most people hated him because of his namesake. He didn't know what he got out of that, he felt like all he was ever given was pain and resentment, except for by Hitori and his father. And now his entire village is gone, his home and for all he knew his father was too and, he still didn't know his purpose or what he had gotten from it. But, Risha wanted to believe her words, the power behind them, he wanted to cling to them.

Reaching out his hand and gesturing for her to take it he said, "I don't know what I've gotten out of any of this other than you, Hitori, but I want to believe your words. I want to believe there is something good coming out of this and that I have some purpose to live for, so I'll do just that." Smiling Hitori took his hand and said, in her normal, shy voice, "I love you."

Pulling her into a hug Risha whispered to her, "I love you too, Hitori," and then added, "now, can you escort me to the training field?" She giggled a little, "of course I can," she replied.

The pair marched back into the crowded confines of the village; hand in hand they walked past the people who gave them strange stares. Every now and then Risha could hear someone ask, "is that really and Uchiha?" or some such nonsense but he didn't care, he had always been whispered about, mostly bad things so this was a good break from that, and he was with Hitori.

After taking a few shortcuts through some of the alleyways of Konoha they had made their way to the training field. Risha could see from a good distance that Kushina, Haru, and Kiko were all waiting on his arrival. He frowned, wishing that he didn't have to train and that he could have this day to catch up with Hitori.

"Well, I guess I'll see you later then?" she asked, shuffling her feet and blushing slightly. Risha smiled, she was so cute when she was shy and bashful like this, "of course you will," he replied. She looked up and gave him a small smile before running off, Risha stood and watched her until she was out of sight and then finally approached team Kushina.

"Well its about time you showed up," said Haru, "and that girl you were with, was that Hitori-Chan?" Risha nodded and said, "yes, that was her," to which Haru only nodded.

"Well, its good to see you've made yourself a friend, Uchiha, but that doesn't excuse you from being late," remarked Kushina. Risha smiled, she was such a different sensei then the ones from the Sound. If he would have been late to training there, he would have been chastised and forced to practice basic techniques. However, Kushina turned it into a bit of a joke with her lively yet laid back voice and attitude.

"It won't happen again, Kushina-sensei," Risha assured her. She nodded in agreement.

"Well, Uchiha, you've met the team so that means we can skip the introduction and get right to the point. Which, simply put, is an evaluation of your skills in combat and what better way to do that than put you into a tight spot? In other words, you will be fighting Haru and Kiko at the same time on your own, unless that's too much or its too soon."

For a few minutes Risha just looked at everyone of them, Haru with his smug look, Kiko with her smiling face, and Kushina with her mocking smile. In that moment, he knew he was outclassed, he also knew that he was still injured, he should step down. But, just as he was about to, he remembered what Naruto had told him, "_Ninja's respect strength_," he had said. In that phrase Risha found conviction and with a smile he said, "Too much? Too soon? Ha, as if! I'll take them on." With that he caught the pleased smiles of everyone's face and he knew that he had said exactly what they'd expected.

"Well then, Uchiha, you have proven to be brave, if nothing else at all. For that, I wish you the best of luck, you will need it. Now, take your places," said Kushina.

The three took their spots, Risha deciding that standing in between them both would be his best option. Quickly he glanced around, taking in his surroundings, he noticed that there were not training dummies or equipment, all that he could see was cut grass and some trees spread out around them. _Well, nothing to take advantage of I guess_, he thought and then closed his eyes. _Sharingan!_

As soon as he opened his eyes he heard movement from behind, it was Kiko, she was charging him quickly. Risha smiled, normally he might not have been able to react, but with his Sharingan, she wasn't going to be able to lay a finger on him. He quickly made hand signs and then called out, "fire style: fireball jutsu." Taking in a big breath and mixing it with a mass of his chakra he created a mass fireball and then, he exhaled, releasing a flaming ball so hot that it scorched his face.

Kiko, reacting quickly, jumped to the side to avoid being hit, she then reached into her ninja bag and pulled out a few shuriken that she tossed and Risha. Then, at the same time, Haru crossed his fingers and called out, "shadow clone jutsu." Several clones appeared and charged Risha, trapping him.

In a rush, Risha completed a lengthy succession of hand signs just as the shuriken hit. His body flew backwards and for a moment it seemed like it was over, but then, in a poof of smoke, all that was left was a log. Haru and Kiko were both stunned that he had managed to get away, to stunned to realize when everything began to go hazy.

_Got you both now_, thought Risha as he crossed his fingers, creating a mass of shadow clones that stormed into the sandstorm. He then pulled two kunai knives from his ninja pouch at his side and waited patiently.

Minutes passed and nothing had happened except that about half of Risha's clones were gone, but from the knowledge he had gained from them he knew that one of them was almost in range. A few more moments passed by until, finally, from out of the sandstorm came the Hyuuga girl. Without wasting anytime he flung a kunai at her, hitting her in her shit and bringing her down to her knees. Then, from the sandstorm, one of Risha's clones came forth and kicked the downed Kiko in the head, sending her through the air only to land with, unconscious.

Only one was left, Haru, and according to his what he had learned from his clones, he hadn't moved at all. With a scowl Risha cancelled the sandstorm jutsu and along with it the shadow clone technique. He found Haru standing in across from him, he didn't have so much as a scratch on him but Risha could tell by his sweating that he had become tired from fighting the clones.

Positioning his kunai in front of him Risha attacked, rushing at Haru head on. Haru took a defensive stance as Risha swung his kunai at him. He was easily able to deflect the attacks and counter by kicking Risha in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him. As Risha doubled over in pain, Haru followed his counter with a solid right hook that sent the Uchiha to the ground.

For a few moments he laid there, coughing and trying to find his breath, it seemed impossible. Haru stood over him in waiting, "get up," he said, "we both know you can take more." Rolling over and then crawling a few feet away, Risha stood and, with a deep scowl he threw his kunai. Haru avoided it easily, but then, he felt something hot approaching him. When he looked he saw that it was a tremendous fireball. Smiling he reached his hand out and concentrated his chakra into his hand. It was swirling blue energy, uncontrolled and unfocused at first but soon if became compact and strong.

Looking up at the fireball Haru called out, "Rasengan!" And he charged forward, extending his hand and ripping through the giant fireball with the power of his own jutsu. Risha was stunned to see his technique being ripped apart, his guard was broken and Haru took advantage of it. A clone came up behind Risha, grabbing him and holding him in place. It was over now, Risha closed his eyes and smiled, he had lost, in that moment he felt the Rasengan make contact but that was it, there was not pain, only blackness.


	9. Chapter 9 Healing The Wounded

_**Chapter 9: Healing The Wounded**_

_**I own not Naruto**_

Warmth embraced Risha in the darkness, it was comforting, so much so that he became conscious of the fact that he was smiling. He opened his eyes to find himself stripped down to his underwear and Hitori over top of him. She had a determined look on her face and Risha could see small beads of sweat forming on her brow. He could tell she was mending his injuries and he knew that if she was sweating while doing it, he wasn't exactly in the best shape. Not to mention that he noticed her eyes being puffy and bloodshot, as if she were crying.

Mustering up what limited strength he had, Risha lifted his hand and touched Hitori's cheek. She jumped a little from the unexpected contact, but then pulled her own hand up and touched his while she continued to mend his injuries with her other. Risha smiled, remembering that before they had been rivals and he had even resented her to a degree. Now however, she was his best friend, his girlfriend, and it always took moments like this for him to notice her, really notice her. Anyone could see how beautiful she was, how shy she was, how brilliant she was, but not everyone could see how deep her kindness and beauty really went. It was just on the outside, these things were a part of who she was. And Risha was willing to bet almost anything that no one had ever seen how truly gentle she was, or how passionate, or how funny. It was only in moments like this that he saw deep inside her and behold the shining beauty that was the true her.

Risha wanted dearly to tell her all of this, to tell her that he loved he but he knew that the moment he opened his mouth the tears would come pouring out, so he stayed silent as she healed him. For almost an hour she worked with just one hand, keeping hers on his and caressing it ever so gently. But, she was finally forced to removed her had when she hit an extra nasty spot that required her full attention. It was another hour before she finally removed both hands and, while whipping the sweat from her face, she said, "looks like your all put back together."

Risha sighed, "Great, I feel much better, thanks to you."

"That's good, however you need to be careful, I may be good but dear old Haru messed you up good. You are extremely lucky he held back like he did," said Hitori.

Risha frowned deeply, "He held back on me? Well, that's depressing, I thought I forced him to go all out. Oh well, just gives me a good reason to train extra hard, so that way I can kick his ass next time."

Hitori laughed, "I'm glad your so determined, very hot you know. But, it will be a lot of work, he's one of the best ninja in the whole village. That's to be expected when your trained by the great Naruto though," she said with a dramatic arm jester.

Risha sighed again, "Well, I am glad I could turn you on, that's always a plus, a big one at that. However, as for work, I can do that, I will do that, I need to be stronger, much stronger and it needs to happen fast. But, Hitori, darling, you really need to get off your Naruto kick," he added with a small chuckle.

"I…I never said it turned me on," she said, looking down at the ground and blushing deeply.

"Oh? Then why is it that your blushing so much, dear?" asked Risha, in a rather mocking, playful way.

Hitori blushed even more, "shut…shut up! And, who are you to question the great Naruto?"

Risha laughed loudly, "I can't shut up and answer that question, dear," he said and then watched as her blush turned into a little bit of anger.

"Just answer my question before I _reverse _heal you and leave you to die, or something worse, like chop off…you little friend." The look in her eye and the fact that she pointed with her scalpel frightened Risha.

"Okay, okay, no need to make threats like that. Now, I'm not questioning Naruto, he is great, but aren't you a little obsessed?" Said Risha

"No, not at all am I obsessed with him," she replied simply and Risha, not wanting to spark another argument nodded in agreement. Then, they were silent, she had taken a seat at the foot of his bed and Risha was too tired and weak to get up and hold her as he wanted. So, the pair sat in silence, enjoying and absorbing each others presence.

"Risha?" Asked Hitori

"Yes, love?" He replied

"If your feeling up to it…would you like to go and get some roman, my treat?" She asked and although Risha couldn't see her face, her could tell she was blushing. He smiled, remembering how she'd asked him earlier about seeing each other, that cute look she had when she was bashful and how she looked at the ground, it was so lovely.

"Well of course, I'd love to go get some roman with you. And…it should be my treat for making you cry…"answered Risha, trailing off. Hitori turned around quickly to look at him, she was obviously surprised.

"Oh no, no, no dear, you didn't make me cry. I just couldn't blink while I was healing you and my eyes got all watery. It wasn't you, so this is my treat to you, don't try to reverse that or argue it," she sputtered out quickly.

Risha smiled a little, she wouldn't even let him be sad for causing her to be, she really was sweet. Shaking his head he said, "If you insist, dear, then it can be your treat. Next time though, its on me, deal?"

Hitori smiled cutely and agreed with a nod. Just then, Kushina, Haru, and Kiko walked into the room and Hitori's smile faded instantly, she averted her gaze to the ground and shoved her hands in her pokers. "I'll…I'll wait for you outside then, bye," she said and then run off. Risha simply frowned at her departure.

"Well, you look like nothing ever happened. But, that's our dear Hitori, she's simply brilliant when it comes to what she does, no?" Asked Kushina, in a somewhat mocking tone that caused Risha to glare are her.

"She is far more than brilliant," he replied.

Kushina smiled, "of course. But I didn't come here to talk to you about your interests in her, I came to say good job. You may have lost, but you weren't half bad and with some work you could become a very strong ninja. Now that I'm done with my speech, I think Haru and Kiko have their own piece, Haru, go one," she said, gesturing him forward with her hand.

He stepped forward and, with a somewhat averted gaze said, "I am sorry for putting you in here, but you put up a hell of a fight. After you get stronger, I would love to battle again. Maybe then we'll be more evenly matched for one another," after he had finished, he stepped back and Kiko stepped forward.

"You did very well in battle. The way that you used the shadow clones to predict where we were was a great move. I do hope that you continue to learn how to come up with plans on your feet like that and I hope you broaden your horizon," once finished, she too stepped back into the background.

Risha smiled at them all, he was overjoyed to be praised in such a way, it was something very new to him and he liked it very, very much. "Thank you all. As for getting stronger, you can bet I will, I'll work extra hard. I have to. And Haru, I accept that challenge of yours, anytime, any place." Haru smiled darkly at that.

With a smile of her own Kushina said, "well, we will be going now, tomorrow come by the training field, I would like to teach you something's. Until then, read this, it will make my teachings go much faster." She tossed him an old book with nothing marking the front except a symbol. It was bond in leather and was smooth and cool to the touch.

"Thank you," Risha managed to say before they all left the room. For a few moments he sat, staring at the book, on the first page was the address of his home, it was where his father had lived, then he looked at the wall until finally everything had sunk in. As he got dressed he thought about the mass of events that had occurred in all under twenty-four hours. His village was gone, his father missing, he had been reunited with his love, he has joined a team that liked him, and he had been in the hospital twice, it had been a full day. Now that he was dressed he left his room to find Hitori across from the door. When she saw him, she ran up and hugged him tightly and then let go before he could return the favor.

"Ready for our date?" She asked, extending her hand expectantly, a smile lighting up her face. Risha was surprised by her enthusiasm but also happy to see her so glad to spend time with him. Grabbing her hand and pulling her into a hug of his own, he whispered, "I am always ready to spend time with you, dear."

Pulling away he could see her blushing and couldn't help but smile. Her gaze what at the ground now and remained their for a few moments until she finally said, "That means a lot. I…love you."

"I love you too," replied Risha, pouring all his sincerity into those three beautifully complicated words.

Squeezing his hand tightly, Hitori dragged him out of the hospital, giggling all the while. She continued to pull him through the village, getting strange stares from everyone and Risha could tell she was embarrassed, but to his surprise, she showed no signs of stopping. It made him laugh to, so many people were looking, but he didn't care, why should he? As much bad that had happened, he felt like he had found a better life, only thing missing was his father and he knew he'd be with him soon.

After a few hours of running through the village, laughing like idiots, they arrived at their destination. It was a small roman stand, nothing really special, but it was cheap and it was good. As the two sat down, Hitori ordered their favorites and within a matter of minutes they had their food.

The standard small talk traveled between the pair for a while but ended up dying out. They ate at a slow pace to lengthen their time together and both were happier than either on could ever remember. "Hitori," said Risha, breaking the silence, "I'm glad, very glad, that I could be here with you. I don't think I'd want to be anywhere else."

For a few moments, Hitori said nothing, she merely finished off the last bites of her roman. "You…don't want to be in your village instead?" She asked, baring her heart in the question.

"No!" Risha said with passion, "the people in my village were cruel and hated me with a passion. You treat me with such kindness and…you're the only person to show me love other than my father. I want to be here with you and no where else."

Hitori smiled to herself, "I really do love you, Risha," she said.

"And I really do love you, Hitori," he replied and then finished his own roman.

For a few moments they sat there, not really wanting to get up, but finally decided they had to. "Well," began Risha as they walked away from the stand, "want me to escort you home?"

"I'm not going home yet, I have a little D-rank mission to take care of first," she replied and then added, "do you want me to escort you home…know where it is right?"

Risha nodded no, "you go take care of your mission, I know were my house is, it's the one my father lived in, that's what it says in this book," he opened it to show her. "Anyway, after training, I'll see you tomorrow?" Risha asked.

"Of course you will, I'll meet you right outside your home, deal?" She replied

Risha nodded in agreement and then, Hitori turned to leave, in that moment he realized how fast everything was changing and, he realized that he could, at any moment, lose Hitori. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her close, but instead of a hug, he kissed her deeply and passionately. It took a few moments before she was able to do the same, but they stayed, locked in a kiss for a long time until they finally had to separate for air.

"I love you," Risha whispered softly.

"I love you too," Hitori whispered back, her eyes slightly wet and then, although they hated to, they parted ways.


	10. Chapter 10

_**Chapter 10: A three Step Program to becoming a Ninja**_

It was early in the morning and the sunlight shined through the curtain less windows of Risha's apartment, illuminating the entire room. The bright light only caused Risha to roll onto his side, causing the small, leather bound book he had been given to fall the floor, the resulting thud waking him up. For a few moments he stayed on his side, eyes still heavy with sleep and his head thudding slightly. This was his second day in Konoha and already he felt homesick, homesick for a place that had been a hell to him in so many ways. However, Risha knew that once his father showed up everything would be fine, but he head to be strong for when he did come.

Picking himself out of bed and grabbing an all black set of clothes he had found in the closet Risha headed to the washroom. In a matter of minutes he had washed himself and brushed his teeth, causing him to feel new and refreshed. His new clothes were standard black with the Uchiha symbol, but he couldn't shake the feeling that his father had worn the exact same thing that he had. It made him smile to think of his father waking up and doing what he did, dressing how he did, he felt important, felt like he was powerful, like he had something going for him.

Pulling himself from his thoughts Risha quickly made his bed and then proceeded into the small kitchen. Bee-lining the refrigerator he reached up top and grabbed a box of whole grain cereal and, opening the fridge, he pulled out two percent milk. Grabbing a bowl from the cupboard and a spoon from the drawer he quickly made and ate a full bowl of cereal. Feeling energized and full, he slipped on his open-toed Jonin shoes and bolted out the door.

Anxious to be on time Risha used the alleyways that Hitori had showed him before when she had escorted him. It was a much more pleasurable way to get around, it allowed Risha to avoid the mumblings of the crowds and their stares. Not to mention that Risha wasn't a crowd person, he always felt awkward and too surround around big numbers of strange people.

Within a few minutes the training field had come into full view, this time however there were some small differences. The training equipment had all been set up, the dummies, the kunai, even the weights. It made sense of course, Risha came here for some special training, so why would the equipment be left out? When Risha saw Kushina, he noticed that she was smiling, he guessed that she was pleased that he had showed up on time this time.

When he was but a few feet away from her, she put out her hand, indicating that he needed to stop. He did as such. For a few moments all she did was look at him, which served to annoy Risha, it seemed as though every time she saw him she stared at him, a if she were looking for something.

"Well, it pleases me to see you in short shorts, it makes for a much more revealing outfit," she said, staring down at the black pair of short shorts Risha had picked out this morning. When he looked down at them, they suddenly felt tighter than before, and to have a women staring at them like that, he couldn't help but blush.

"You…you! Are a dirty women, sensei, dirty!" Risha yelled, pointing at her, to which she laughed.

"Well you must like it to some degree, as you are blushing quite a bit," she pointed out.

Risha blushed more, "I hate you," he mumbled.

A moment of silence passed between the two before Kushina said, "I take it you read a bit of that book I let you have?"

"I read it all," replied Risha shortly.

Kushina looked both surprised and pleased to hear that, "good, very good. That will make this little training session go all the quicker. Now, as you know, the book possessed all the knowledge of the Uchiha clan, the history, the jutsu, the tai-jutsu, even the stages and abilities of the Sharingan. The history however is most interesting, since it tells the tragedy that befell the clan, do you mind telling me what you think of what befell you clan?"

For a few moments Risha thought about what he had learned, about how the Uchiha clan was pushed to the edge of the village and then slaughtered by one of its own members because the elders feared the clans power. "I think that what happened was terrible and disgusting," answered Risha.

"And?" asked Kushina

"And…I can understand why they did it. As wrong as it was, the job of the government is to keep the best interests of the people in mind and keep those protected. No matter what that means. However, they also must judge between what it right and what it wrong. What happened to my clan was an example of what happens when people with good intensions but no moral boundaries are left in charge of a decision," he answered.

Kushina was silent as she stared off into space. The look on her face was thoughtful as she pondered over everything that the little Uchiha had said. Finally she smiled and said, "very well said, Risha, I do enjoy the way that your mind seems to work. You have shown something that I can tell you didn't know was important, but my boy, what you've just done shows me where your strengths lie. You have powerful insight and you are not led astray by your own injustices. Also, you aren't so blind as to believe everything your government tells you. I like that you have the power to analyze people and events in such a way. So, congratulations, you have completed the first step."

Risha blinked in surprise, he did not expect such heavy words of compliment to be used, but his surprise quickly turned to confusion at that last line. "What do you mean by first step?" he inquired.

Kushina smiled, "to put it simply, I have created a special training method that consists of three steps. The first is to see if you have the ability to think on your own, to make sure you aren't a mindless puppet that would do whatever they are told. The second step is a bit more fundamental. After all, a ninja needs to be physically strong as well as mentally. So, we are going to condition you and because I like your body so much, I think I'll give you a few jutsu to learn as well."

Risha wasn't sure if he should be grateful that he was getting to learn some jutsu or if he should be angered because of the reason behind it. He decided quickly though that he needed to learn them and it was best just to accept his attractiveness. "Okay, so then you want me to do push-ups and stuff like that then?" Asked Risha.

Kushina laughed loudly and, to Risha's surprise, her laugh was a rather cute one that busted with energy. It almost made Risha want to join in and laugh with her. "No, not exactly that. What we are going to do is much more effective. First thing if you need to put the weights over there on," she said pointing at the pile of weights. Risha walked over to the pile and pulled out the biggest one, it was heavy, so heavy that it make Risha's arms quake. It was also surprisingly thin and sleek, when pressed up against his shirt it blended it almost unnoticeably.

"Now, that one will go on your waist, make sure its hidden under your shirt. Then, the two lightest ones go on your wrists and the other two go on your legs, and keep those under your pants," Kushina instructed.

Risha did as he was told quickly and immediately felt the increase in his weight, but, to his surprise, he could move around like before. He wasn't constricted and had the flexibility of before. "Wow, these weights, are great. I can move around in them perfectly, but why?" he asked.

"Hmm? They don't have anything like this in the Hidden Sound?" Kushina wondered allowed to herself, "well, in any case, that's because these are chakra enhanced so that you retain the mobility you would have normally. Really, it's the best way to train someone and up their stamina in a hurry."

Risha nodded and then, crossing his fingers he called out "shadow clone jutsu," causing a single clone to appear in front of him. Kushina watched in quiet as Risha and his shadow clone sparred. They were slow, very slow, but that was to be expected, as was when Risha's leg buckled in the middle of a kick and he toppled over.

However, to her surprise, Risha continued to fight, he had collapsed 3 times after about half and hour, but he continued to push himself up and start again. Eventually his movements became sloppy and each punch looked as if it pained him. It even got to the point where he could no longer kick because it took everything he had to stay on his feet.

Finally, after about forty-five minutes of sparring, the clone disappeared and Risha collapsed with exhaustion. He laid on his back with his eyes closed, he was breathing heavily and he was completely soaked in sweat. For long minutes he just laid on the ground, his breath slowly evening out. The warm rays of the sun beat down, removing the fatigue from Risha's body and the cool breeze that wafted by kept him cool. Everything was peaceful and calm and lovely. Slowly and without his notice Risha drifted off into his dreams and, for once in his life, he dreamed of good things. Of Hitori and him, of his father, of his new life here, he was happy, truly happy for the first time.


	11. Chapter 11 Now all my friends are gone

_**Chapter 11: Now all my friends are gone**_

_**I do not own Naruto**_

It was mid-day and the sun was at the highest point in the sky, it was warm, the birds were singing happily in the trees, the air was filled with the pleasant scent of flowers and a gentle breeze wafted through. It was the most beautiful of days in the hidden leaf village and the perfect day for Naruto to take a stroll. He walked along the path that led out of the village, for that was exactly where he was going, out of the village.

When he approached the gate, he saw that no one was guarding it, he smiled, "thank the god for lunch breaks." Wasting no time as he had no idea when the replacements would show up, Naruto hurried his way out of the village and ran down the path. For many long minutes he strolled along, admiring the sounds of nature all around him. It really was very peacefully.

Finally he came upon a small bush that stood out among that rest, at least to the a highly skilled ninja it would. Naruto reached into the bush and grabbed hold of something metal. It was a latch. A secret passage that led to outside of the sound village, it was used in times of emergency when the villages needed to get quick messages to one another. Pulling on the latch the rusted door creaked open and Naruto stepped into the bush and, as he descended a ladder, he closed the door behind him, leaving no trace of its existence.

The path was lit by many torches revealing the moss covered stone walls that twisted and turned. Naruto followed the path silently, all the while growing anxious to get to his destination. He knew not what he would find once he arrived at the remnants of the hidden sound, but he hoped to discover a clue left by Sasuke as to his location or maybe something revealing who or what had attacked.

For almost an hour Naruto followed the path until finally he came upon a ladder much like the one before. On the wall was a special message Sasuke had engraved in the stone, "this is where you enter my territory loser, try not to seem like such an idiot." A small grin crept across the Hokage's face at the sight of the message, it was and always had been an excellent representation of his relationship with Sasuke. Climbing to the top of the ladder Naruto pushed the door open with surprising ease. When he had emerged and was able to examine the door he saw that it was well oiled and not at all rusty like his own. Naruto glared, once again Sasuke had upstaged him.

Closing the door, Naruto proceeded into the Sound village and was horrified to see it. The buildings were burnt and blackened, bodies of ninja, academy students, women, men, even small children rotted on the ground filling the air with a fowl stench. Flies circled around the bodies laying their eggs as vultures and crows circled above, occasionally coming down to feast on some of the remains. Covering his mouth with the sleeve of his Hokage's rode Naruto resisted the urge to hurl.

As he walked along the broken village he saw more and more rotting corpses, some of them burned and charred beyond all recognition and some being eaten by various scavengers. Naruto's lips curled in disgust and his stomach began to do flips at the sight and smell. All of the disappeared upon the sight of a corpse that was all to familiar. It was Sasuke.

Naruto fell to his knees by the corpse of his rival, his best friend, and his brother. With a shaky hand he touched Sasuke's snow pale face and could feel the tears building in his eyes.

"Sasuke?" He asked, his voice barely hiding the sorrow that was now ravaging his heart and soul.

No answer.

"Sasuke…?" He asked, his tone desperate for an answer, a movement, anything to show that this was all a clever jutsu so that his opponent would only think him dead. He got no such sign.

Tears began to fall from the Hokage's eyes blurring his vision, he blinked and they fell down his slightly tanned cheeks and then fell onto the body of his friend. Naruto could feel the world falling out from beneath him. Everything he knew and had loved was washed away. His stomach became empty, as did his heart. His blue eyes lost the shine of life that had once been in them and became dull and listless. For a long time he knelt there, not sure what to feel. Everything was confusing. His emotions whirled around within him. Anger, hate, sadness, all battled for supremacy. But in the end, Naruto was left crying and numb over the corpse of the one person in the world who had understood him best.

Picking up the corpse, Naruto held it against him, the blood from the hole in his chest staining his robe. He didn't care. Tears continued to fall from his eyes and onto Sasuke's body.

"Why?" Naruto asked as he looked up to the sky, "why must my friends continue to die around me? Why not me, why not take me and leave them? I…cannot live in a world without them, so bring them back. Bring them back!" He shouted up into the heavens and then broke into uncontrollable sobs.

For many long minutes Naruto sat with Sasuke's body pressed against him until finally, he sat him done. Then, holding out his hand, he created the Rasengan. He shoved it into the ground near him. It created a ditch just big enough for Sasuke's body. He carefully picked it up and placed it into the ditch. With a single hand sign, the dirt rushed over and covered the ditch, leaving no trace to the disturbance of the ground.

Naruto stood. "Good-bye my friend," he spoke, "I swore those words would never be said again, or even thought, but I broke yet another promise to you. So this, my dear brother, is good-bye forever. Good-bye to our rivalry, to our friendship, our brotherhood, to everything. May you rest in peace with the rest of our beloved friends who have fallen before us and may I join you soon."

As Naruto turned to leave he saw Sasuke's sword shine in the light out of the corner of his eye. Picking up the blade he looked at it and thought for a moment on whether or not he should keep it. He quickly decided that it would be a good gift for Risha when the time was right. Turning again to leave, he saw a small piece of cloth. When he picked it up to examine it, he immediately dropped it. The symbol of the Akatski was on it.

Shock broke through the fog of numbness that had gripped Naruto and in that moment Risha's foretelling of a Grass ninja made sense. Sasuke has many enemies in that village during the war and after it fell it was possible that a survivor joined Akatski and then killed Sasuke.

Anger flooded Naruto, he should have guessed that something like this would happen! Now his best friend was dead and an Akatski that was possibly more powerful than the old one had arose. Making a few quick hand signs Naruto released the flying thunder god jutsu and was teleported into his office. He lay the sword and cloth down on his desk and then sank into his chair. Everything was falling out from under him and in that instant the tears returned that the Hokage was left paralyzed by the pain and depression that had befallen him.

He was alone, truly alone, just like when he was a child.


	12. Chapter 12 The World is a Stage

_**Chapter 12: The world is a stage**_

_**I do not own Naruto**_

Jolting forward Risha awoke with a start, the images of his nightmare still fresh in his mind. He was facing his father, both of them were using Sharingan, his father was smiling and he was saying something that Risha couldn't quite hear. Then, as he reached out his hand to pat Risha on the head, as he often did when he was proud of him, he suddenly stopped. His face went pale as the full moon and his eye faded. Blooded poured from his mouth, but the smile remained. Sasuke took a wobbly step forward and placed his had on his sons head. He then whispered, "twins of a disaster are only identical on the outside." And then, he saw her, Chero, she was laughing wickedly, Risha could feel the tears building behind his eyes and then, he awoke.

For many long minutes Risha sat in the darkness before it finally occurred to him that he was in his room. The last thing he remembered was collapsing during training, again. For the past two weeks he had been committed to his training, every morning he woke up and ate, then he'd walk Hitori to here squad before going to meet his own. Then, after the mission he would go on to eat with Hitori before heading up Hokage rock and doing some light training exercises. From their he would meet Kushina at the training field and begin sparring and advanced jutsu training which would continue until he passed out from exhaustion. It was a tough schedule, but after the first week Risha had mastered the phoenix flower jutsu and perfected lions barrage. Not to mention he had developed and perfected several techniques with the demon wind shuriken. Even his skill with the Sharingan was improving.

Pulling himself from bed Risha opened the curtains to let a wall of light enter the room. From their he showered and prepared himself a small breakfast of eggs, bacon, and milk. Then, after making sure he had everything in his ninja tool bag Risha proceeded to leave his house. As he descended down the steps he saw waiting for him, looking lovely as ever, Hitori. Jumping down the last few steps he took hold of her and pulled her into a deep and passionate kiss. He could feel her flinch from the unexpected contact but she quickly adjusted and returned the kiss in full.

"I love you, my darling," said Risha, smiling.

"I love you too, Ri-Chan," she said with a small smile.

Grabbing her hand the two walked off happily, taking the back alleyways as always to avoid the groups of people out on the streets. They said nothing at all, they were completely incased in each others presence. Every few minutes Risha would sneak a small kiss causing Hitori to blush and every so often she would pull him into a deep kiss, making Risha blush deeply.

After about an hour they had arrived where Hitori's squad was waiting but, much to Risha's surprise, his own squad was there as well. The couple ran up to join their respective teams, but not before one last kiss, a sweet and quick kiss, one that was always a promise to meet again later.

Once Risha had joined his team he could see that everyone was staring at him and at first it confused him as to why. It wasn't until he saw that Hitori's team was doing the same that he realized what it was all about. That kiss was in front of everyone, they had never once kissed in front of their teams or friends, mostly because they were both too shy.

"You guys don't need to stare just because I got to kiss the most amazing person in the world. I know that your stunned and you probably want to take notes on how I managed to get someone as great as her, but you're out of luck because I don't even know," said Risha loud enough for everyone on his and Hitori's team to hear.

Everyone fell silent and Risha could see that Hitori was blushing brightly. For a few moments her felt bad for embarrassing her like that but then, she stepped lunged towards him and pulled him into a kill filled with such passion Risha could hardly believe that it was for him. The two stayed locked in that kiss for many long minutes until she finally pulled away and Risha saw the tears around her eyes. He gently whipped them away with his sleeve and whispered, "I love you." She whispered the same back.

When they again returned to their squads no one stared, but all were silent for a long time. Until finally Kushina spoke, "Alright you little genin, I bet you are wondering why we are both gathered here. Well, to put it simply today is the genin evaluation exam day. The rest of the genin will be gathering here soon. We just happened to be early."

"What is a genin evaluation exam?" Risha asked.

"A genin evaluation," Kiko was the one to answer, "is a tradition here where the nine genin fight it out to test their skills in battle. The more wins a team has, the higher ranked missions that team can take. The highest being C-Rank."

Risha was silent, his village had never done anything like that, you were just sent on missions based on how well your team had down before. This idea of testing through battle was strange and caused him to feel nervous. He had never met any of the other genin and didn't know any of their techniques. He was at a disadvantage. Not to mention, if he didn't go good he would be humiliated.

Turning Risha walked away from the group and ran, he could hear his team call for him briefly, but Kushina quickly silenced them. He ran for a long while, until he came to a small meadow where he fell over. He could feel tears behind his eyes. He couldn't understand why he felt so weak and so powerless of all a sudden, but he did. He was afraid. He closed his eyes.

A gentle touch to his arm and Risha opened his eyes, it was Hitori. "Why did you run away like that Ri-Chan?" She asked, concern riddled her voice.

"I'm…afraid that I'll mess this up just like I mess up everything. Hitori, I'm not strong, I'm not good with jutsu and I'm not that smart. I've never been good at being a ninja and now I'm going to have it on paper after this. I'm afraid," said Risha.

Taking a deep breath Hitori said, "Risha, this world is a stage and everyone is watching. If we forget our lines, everything falls apart. But if you keep what you know in you heart the show will go on. You can't fear the outcome until it happens." Hitori then reached out her hand, Risha grabbed it, and the two marched off towards where the exam would begin.

Risha felt a new confidence, a new understanding of the world. From Hitori's words he had drawn strength and meaning. He had finally come to realize that his life was a play, a dance and all this time he had not been moving to any tune at all. Now however, he had a harmony, a beat. He was now moving in step, in perfect harmony to his own dreams, his dreams where he always shined brightest.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13: Self-Appointed Rival**

**I do not own Naruto.**

Upon returning to the field, Risha noticed that there was considerably more people there. He quickly located his team and said a good-bye to Hitori as she went back to her own. Risha could feel a glare coming from one of the members of her team. It was a ninja that had the same hair color as Kushina and the teams sensei, he was dressed in all black and had his ninja headband tied ever so loosely around his neck. The other member, Risha noticed, has shiny brown hair with bangs that draped over his eyes, he wore standard ninja gear and slouched over.

Haru gabbed Risha's shoulder, "those two over there are Haven and Kaien. Haven is a bit cold and a total genius, not to mention Kushina's younger brother. Kaien is the son of Shikmaru-sama, he may seem lazy but the kid has skill like you wouldn't believe. The team over there, he pointed across from where they stood, is Rock Lee's team. The girl on the end is Amy Lee, that's Rock's daughter and, to put it simply, she's certifiably insane. Then, the middle one, his name is Rai Ookami, he's a bit off too, but in a good way. Finally, the one at the end, Tsuki Shiba, she's the normal one, if that says anything at all."

Risha analyzed each one, Amy was beautiful, in a tom-boyish sort of way. She wore bandages around her arms and green spandex. Her jet-black hair was cut short and she was underdeveloped in certain areas. Rai was a wild looking boy that wore an overly cool smile. He dressed in rags and looked a mess. Then there was Tsuki, she was unreadable in all respects and that worried Risha.

Minutes passed by and everyone stood there, eyes shifting, observing one another. The anticipation began to itch at Risha until he found himself wondering if this fight would ever get underway. Then, as if to answer his prayers, a masked ninja appeared in the middle.

Clearing his throat he spoke, "okay now, sorry that this took so long, we had some last minute preparations to make. Anyway, our first match will be between Risha Uchiha of team Kushina and Amy Lee of team Lee. Will the two please step forward."

Amy did so without any hesitation, however, as Risha stepped forward, he felt Kushina grasp his shoulder firmly.

"Risha…this girl you are about to fight is no joke. By no means should you hold anything back because she will not grant you the same cutesy. Furthermore, do not push yourself or try to be some damned heroic fool. Give up if it gets bad. Understood?" Risha gave no answer, he simply shrugged her off and continued to the battle field.

"Will the two combatants shake hands," the masked ninja commanded more than asked.

The two stepped forward. Amy had powerful eyes, they were cold, calm, and calculating. It took all of Risha's determination to hold her gaze and it took all of his courage to match it. She seemed pleased at this.

Extending her hand Amy spoke, "I will crush you, boy."

Risha smiled as he grasped her hand and said, "no, you won't.

Many tense moments ticked by as the two glared at each other. Risha could tell by the look in her eyes that she was planning on destroying him completely. However, he refused to let her resolve intimidate him. He kept his cool and made sure to show in his own eyes that he was not one to be underestimated.

"Alright," the masked ninja spoke, ending the mental battle, "the rules are simple, you are not to kill your opponent and no one is to step in. This battle will show your ability to carry out missions and will decide if you are able to take on tougher challenges. The best of luck to the teams. Now. Begin!"

Risha jumped away from Amy just as she went for a punch. _Damn_, he thought, _she isn't one for the formalities of battle_.

Rushing forward Risha attacked. He threw a punch at her nose, which she gracefully dodge. Keeping pace he tried for a leg sweep, but again, she avoided it by jumping back several feet. Without breaking motion Risha grabbed a kunai and threw it at her and then, with several quick hand motions he called out, "shadow shuriken jutsu!" The one kunai multiplied in to ten, all speeding toward Amy.

_Interesting_, she thought, _he's an interesting opponent_. Amy smiled as she took stance. The shuriken drew closer and closer until they were upon her and too close to dodge. Risha smiled to himself victoriously, but it only lasted a moment before, in one fluid motion, Amy spun and, creating a small whirlwind, deflected all of the shuriken.

Risha's eyes widened in surprise, throwing him off his guard. Amy took advantage of this opening, she charged quickly and, using the force behind her charge, struck Risha in his chest with her open palm. The air was forced from his body as he flew backwards several feet and then landed, smacking his head off of the ground.

All the genin flinched and the Jonin remained deathly silent. Minutes passed by and Risha did not stir. Amy smiled and, with a small shrug, began to walk to her team, assured that she was the victor.

"Behind you!" She heard one of her teammates call out to her. She twisted around, ready to defend herself, but it was far to late for that. Risha's foot smashed into the upper part of her chest, sending her back a few feet and into the ground.

Everyone was silent.

Risha spit to the side to remove the taste of blood that was filling his mouth. For a few moments he only looked at her on the ground. She wasn't moving and from what he could tell, she wasn't breathing. He knew better though, he knew it was a trick to get him to turn his back to her and he would not fall for it.

"Don't underestimate me. I'm not one to be fooled by my own tricks and I'm not one to be beaten so easily. So, if you're going to crush me like you said, then you had better fight with everything you've got," Risha announced.

Amy laughed. "You are an interesting person, Uchiha Risha. But, if you really want my best, then I suggest that you give me yours, else it would be an insult to me."

Risha smiled, "okay," he said simply as he shut his eyes for a brief moment, only to reveal his Sharingan once he re-opened them. "If you want my best, then I'll give you it."

Risha charged forward and, before Amy even had a chance to put up her defense, he had struck with a punch to her chest. The air rushed from her lungs and, not giving her any time to recover, Risha kicked up, slamming his foot into the right side of her head and bring her down to the ground. And in one fluid movement he followed her down and, using his momentum to power his fist, he aimed for his head. Amy, having very little sense due to the kick, saw the punch coming fast and, mustering up as much determination as she could, she rolled over. From there she used her arms to lift herself up off the ground slightly and, angling herself over a little, she planted a solid kick in to Risha's ribs, causing him to fall over.

Pushing herself up Amy followed him to the ground and, in the same movement that Risha had made, she punched him in his left temple, almost knocking him unconscious. She then picked him up from the ground and, using the free hand she had, she punched him in the face and ribs repeatedly.

After ten blows, Risha could feel ribs cracking and breaking and could feel blood pool in his mouth. As the pain began to overwhelm him, Risha felt his ability to think slip faster and faster until finally his mind was blank and he was little more than a punching bag for his adversary.

With a tremendous punch Amy let go and Risha fell to the ground, bleeding and beaten. For many minutes she stood over him, breathing heavily and watching him suspiciously. Finally, however, she relaxed and with a confident smile she began to walk away.

The crowd was completely silent as the looked at Risha's unmoving body. Even the judge was unable to speak. The young ninja's body looked as if it had been snapped in half, his face was pale, and blood was beginning to trace an outline around him.

In her horror Hitori screamed, "RISHA!" Everyone shivered and Amy stopped dead in her tracks to turn and look at the young, pale girl with tears in her eyes. She looked at her with sympathy and felt regret form inside her.

However, as everyone looked at her with sympathy in their eyes, Risha entered into a world of dreams. The scream of his horrified girlfriend ringing in his sub-conscious mind he vividly remembered coming upon her after she had been captured during their mission to protect the Kazekage. As he approached her, tired, bloodied, beaten, he remembered feeling grateful that she was, except for some cuts and bruises, okay. However, when he reached out his hand for her he remembered seeing someone approach with a kunai, ready to kill her. He screamed and charged the assailant. The rest was mostly a blur, but he remembered her scream as she saw the kunai sticking out of him and the blood that flowed freely.

In that moment, chakra flowed through Risha and he felt restored, sore and in great amounts of pain, but restored. He stood up, eyes closed, and when he opened them he saw stunned eyes upon him.

With a smile he spoke, "You won't beat me here because I…am an Uchiha."

With those words spoken, Amy regained herself and changed at a speed that had before been impossible to trace. Now, however, she was slow and Risha could catch her movements and it was then he knew, his Sharingan had advanced to the second rank.

With quick movements, Risha deflected the coming punch that Amy had planned for him and, bending back, he kicked her into the air. Then, in a blinding flash he appeared behind her and, before she had time to react, he kicked her in the ribs, causing her to completely drop her guard. From there, he swung on top of her by bashing her in the face with his forearm. Then, he punched her in her chest, sending her to the ground and, before she had a moment to recover from the impact, Risha flipped in the air and came down upon her with his heal imbedding itself in her stomach.

Amy let out a howl of pain and then was silent. Risha flipped over of her and landed on his knees. His breathing was heavy and his voice was failing him, but still he managed to say, "I told you that I'd win." With that he fell over the winner of the match and Hitori, is faithful girlfriend ran to his side and began the process of healing his wounds.


	14. Chapter 14 SelfMedicated

**Chapter 14: Self-Medicate**

A pain in the ribs and a throbbing headache jarred Risha Uchiha awake. Over top of him was Kiko Huuyga, a look of concentration on her face as she healed his wounds. For a moment Risha was unsure as to what had happened, but his memories quickly returned and he recalled his fight and, more importantly, he recalled winning it. He smiled and relaxed as Kiko continued healing him.

"Up just in time, I see," said Haru Uzumaki as he looked forward.

Risha, unsure of what he was looking at, propped himself up painfully and say, to his surprise, Hitori was standing on the battlefield. Her shoulders were tense as she stared at her opponent, Rai Ookami of Team Lee. Smiling Risha mustered up the strength to stand; to which Kiko has small objections that he simply ignored.

"I think you're right, Haru. I woke up just in time," he said as he stood, slightly hunched over.

As the masked ninja told Hitori and Rai to shake hands, Risha noted that Rai was relaxed and wore a cocky smile with eyes half-closed. Furthermore, he kept his knees bent and shoulders hunched over. He felt dangerous.

"Kushina-sensei, do you know anything about this Ookami character?" Risha inquired.

Without so much as looking at him, Kushina responded, "I know that he is well versed in lightning style jutsu. Also, that ninja from that Ookami clan are feared greatly for their animal like combat style."

With this information in mind Risha watched closely as the two took their places and the fight began.

Hitori took the initiative and charged her opponent, scalpel in hand, and swung at a vein on the neck.

Rai dodged her effortlessly and, countered with a slash from his clawed right hand. He connected as Hitori attempted to dodge him and wounded her shoulder.

Gritting her teeth, Hitori did a complex hand sign and her hand began to glow. Again she charged and slashed with her growing hand, which Rai was able to dodge. However, Hitori did not stop their as she drew multiple needles from her ninja bag and threw them at multiple pressure points on his body.

Rai, realizing he could not dodge them all, made a quick succession of hand signs and called out, "Iron claw jutsu!" as he slashed down, creating slashes in the air and slicing through each of the needles.

It was then, as Rai began to regain his guard, that Hitori charged and, with her fingers locked in place, she jabbed him in the chest with extended fingers.

The pain was immediate, but more shocking to Rai was that he could no longer move.

Hitori smiled sadistically as said, "Oh, I am going to make you suffer now for what you did to my team before."

Turned her hand vertically she sent another wave of pain through Rai. However, this one was different, and almost pulsating. It would strike all his nerves at once, sending floods of both unimaginable pain and pleasure through him and then, just as it seemed to fade, it would return, stronger.

Still smiling Hitori said, "sort of like that lightning jutsu you used on us isn't it? What did you call it? Nerve Shock? Well, I believe mine might be a little more unpleasant. Seeing as how I've got you trapped between pleasure and pain."

Gritting his teeth and mustering as much strength as he could, Rai responded saying, "typical female, always sending mixed signals."

Hitori laughed darkly, "what a perfect name for it, the Mixed Signals jutsu."

Stepping back a few inches Hitori crossed her fingers and cried out, "shadow clone jutsu."

In a puff of smoke, two more Hitori's showed up and, each mirroring the other, they ran through a complex series of hand signs before crying out in unison, "human dissection technique."

Each of the Hitori's glowed blue as they took a triangular formation around Rai.

"This _will _hurt, greatly," one said before she disappeared in a flash and then reappeared on the opposite side, knelt down to the ground, with one hand out and the blue chakra on her left hand sharpened to a blade. It then disappeared as the other did the same and, as it disappeared in smoke, the real Hitori walked up to her opponent and looked him in the eye. With a small smile she forged a blade on both her right and left arms and, in a flash, slashed the upper and lower portions of Rai.

Turning around counted to herself before she heard him cough; it was then she released her hold on him and allowed him to bend over and clutch his stomach in pain. She smiled as she knew that his eternal bleeding and the amplifications she had put on his pain receptors had left him in pain unimaginable.

"Welcome to the ninth circle of hell," she said to herself as she took her place by her team and looked over to see Risha smiling and his team stunned.

"What did he do to deserve that treatment, darling?" Risha inquired.

"His team and ours went on a mission once, during it he fell in love with me. I turned him down and when he pushed, those two," she said, gesturing towards her team mates, "took care of him for me. His response was to find us while we were training and use one of his jutsu to hold us in place and cause us great amounts of pain all at once. This was revenge for that."

Risha's smile grew larger, "I love you, so, so much, darling."

Hitori smiled back, with a look in her eyes rarely seen, one of confidence, of security, and said, "and I you, my dear."

Turning back to his team as she did hers, Risha was caught by the questioning looks of his team-mates.

"How did she do that? I've trained with Hitori for years and, though she is a brilliant medical ninja, I had no idea that he skills went this far," questioned Kiko, utterly stunned.

"There is a whole side you two haven't seen from her and that jutsu is a big part of it. She used that technique to save me when I was trying to save her. Funny, right? But, I must say, the shadow clones are new."

Just as Kiko began to ask a question, the masked ninja appeared and announced, "

The next fight will be between Haru Uzumaki and Haven Hatake." And the two took their places opposite each other on the battlefield.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15: The Genius and The Fool

The two ninja took their places on the battle field opposite of each other. Haru's brighter orange jumpsuit with the red spiral on the back and his fierce, lively blue eyes were a stark contrast to that of the dark clothes and lazy stare of his opponent, Haven.

The proctor repeated the rules and asked the two to shake hands. They both stepped forward and nothing was said. However, neither one turned their back on the other and it was then that it became apparent to Risha, who was kneeling and being healed by Kiko, that these two had faced each other multiple times in the past.

"Kushina, what's the deal with this Haven character?" Risha asked without looking back at her.

For a moment Kushina was silent, but then, in almost a whisper she said, "Haven is my brother, as Haru informed you and he is the strongest ninja amongst the Genin."

Risha was silent and bewildered. How could that be true? He knew that he hadn't had any skills to brag about in the long run, but between his own team and Amy Lee's and even the members of Haven's he was the best? It was scary and exciting all at once.

In a flash Risha was jerked from his thoughts as he say his teammate creating the Rasengan in his hand and preparing to attack.

"Trying to end this quickly, are you?" Haven asked with a smug tone to his voice.

Haru merely smiled and rushed forward. His speed was almost a blur to all of the Genin, who watched with their mouths a-gap. However, to Haven he was far to slow and, with a smug smile on his face he simply side-stepped and, pulling a kunai from his bag, stabbed Haru in the chest.

For a moment their was a small gasp through the Genin, but then a puff of smoke make it clear that this was but a clone

Haven relaxed his guard as the smoke began to clear and shifted his eyes around. Then, as soon as his eyes touched Risha the ground below his feet erupted and Haru came ripping through yelling, "Rising Dragon Rasengan!"

A blue tail had wrapped itself around his arm in his hand was the mouth of a dragon. Just before the mouth made contact it seemed to "breath" the force of the Rasengan and slowly the tail and the rest crept up his arm, adding to its strength. Once it reached the tip a last push shoved Haven into the air where another shadow clone appeared and landed a spinning kick, sending Haven back to the ground with a boom.

Beads of sweet fell down the side of Haru's face as he looked on for a few moments. After almost a solid minute he turned, somewhat certain of his victory over the so called genius.

"Heh, looks like you were giving your brother a little too much credit when you said the 'best of the Genin' eh, Kushina?" stated Risha as he smiled, happy that his friend had won his match.

"No, I was not. Haru hasn't won and he knows it. He's trying to draw out an attack. He knows the only way he can win is if he use that explosive kunai you see him holding. Even then though, his chances aren't good." replied Kushina.

Watching in his own disbelief he wait for this attack and then, in the distance, he heard the chirping of what sounded like birds. Following the sound he saw a blue, shimmering light and, with shadows cast on his cool, bored face, he saw Haven.

Sharingan! He shouted in his head so he could observe this closely.

And then, Haven almost seemed to disappear in front of everyone; everyone except Risha who could clearly see his movements. He was approaching Haru with his arm to his side and crouched low, but there was a big difference. His eyes were no longer bored, but instead, powerful and filled with the intention to kill.

Just then, as he approached with his attack, Haru stuck out his kunai and made a hand-sign with his free hand. An explosion blurred everyone's vision for a moment and then there was just Haru. He was on his knees and bleeding, but he was still there.

For a moment Risha breathed a sigh of relief with his friend, but he quickly saw it was short lived as Haru stood and crafted a Rasengan in his hand. It was only when he glanced to past the other ninja, as Haru was, that he saw Haven, who was equally bloodied and looked a little tired.

"Rasengan!" Haru shouted as he raced forward as fast as he could go.

Haven stayed put, blue lightning in his hand. It was then, as Haru drew clumsily into attack range that Risha knew this was the end and that Haru was going to lose.

Haru struck forward and then, in an effortless way, Haven struck past Haru's neck and yelled out "Lightning Blade!"

The blue electricity coursed through Haru's body causing him to convulse in pain. Then, in a moment he fell to the ground and, with a smug look on his face, Haven returned to his place at his teams side just as Kushina appeared to pick up Haru and return him.

"He's good. Too good," Risha muttered just as it was announced that the next battle would be between Kiko and Tsuki Shiba.


End file.
